Throw out your preconceived notions of dull meetings that don’t seem to accomplish anything. The charrette, born out of the 19th-century architectural scene in Paris, is a format designed to bring people together and make big things happen in a short period of time. The World Bank describes it in regards to community planning: “The charrette process can be adapted to fit different projects, but all charrette initiatives use the same basic strategy: Planners involve as many stakeholders as early as possible in a set of short, intensive design meetings. In these collaborative, hands-on sessions, participants help planners root out potential problems, identify and debate solutions, and create a buildable plan.”